No More Excuses: Making the Case for Equal Employment Laws in Utah A Comparative Analysis of Laws, Rhetoric and Arguments on ENDA Legislation

Since 1974, members of Congress have been trying to pass legislation that would afford employment nondiscrimination protections for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and transsexual employees. This year, theEmployment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) came closer to becoming law than ever before. However, ENDA’s progress has not been achieved easily. Along the way, opposition from conservative individuals, legislators and groups, as well as factions within the queer community, have divided and stalled the progress of federal ENDA legislation. Until all-inclusive ENDA legislation is passed to protect all members of the queer community at the local, state and federal levels, these able and ready members of the workforce will continue to suffer from injurious employment discrimination, at detriment to them as well as state and federal employment markets. For many reasons, now is the time to pass ENDA laws to afford equal employment protections to all workers in Utah